CCI imposes penalty on paper manufacturers for indulging in cartelisation

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has imposed a financial penalty and issued a 'cease and desist' order against certain companies and an association manufacturing paper from agricultural waste and recycled waste paper. These organisations allegedly indulged in cartelisation.

As per the CCI,  these organisations were found to have contravened the provisions of Section 3(1) of the Competition Act, 2002 (Act), which proscribe anti-competitive agreements. The case was initiated suo motu by the Commission based on certain material found during the ongoing investigations of two other cases.

The CCI also imposed a symbolic penalty of Rs 5 lakh each on the 10 paper manufacturers found guilty of cartelisation. Further, a penalty of Rs 2.5 lakh was imposed on the association for providing its platform for anti-competitive activities.

Apart from the above, the CCI also directed these manufacturers and the association to cease and desist in the future from indulging in anti-competitive conduct.

The CCI said the period of the cartel was noted by the DG to be from September 2012 till March 2013. It found these companies and an association, which provided its platform for such activities, indulged in cartelisation in fixing the prices of writing and printing paper.

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